Gudiya rape case: CBI submits final status report before HC on custodial death

A Special Investigation unit of Central Bureau of Investigation today submitted the final status report of about 600 pages before the Himachal Pradesh High Court claiming to sort out the issue of custodial death of an alleged accused Suraj arrested by the state police after Gudiya rape case.

The Counsel for the CBI, Mr. Anshul Bansal furnished a copy of CBI status report to the division bench of acting justice Sanjay Karol and justice Sandeep Sharma here today. He said that it had completed the probe and filed charge sheet against Eight police officer including the SIT in charge of state police Mr. ZH Zaidi, DSP Manoj Joshi and SHP Rajinder Singh and others.

The CBI aslo informed the court that ninth police accused and former police Chief and SP, Mr. D.W.Negi was in judicial custody and agency would also file another supplementary charge sheet against Mr. Negi within the four weeks of today probing his involvement in the crime who was arrested on Nov 16, 2017.

Mr Bansal also informed the court that CBI has recorded statement under section 164 of two SIT member DSP Mr. Bhajandev Negi and DSP Mr. Ratan Singh Negi in the matter and agency was contemplating to impleaded them as approver or witness in the custodial death or Gudiya rape case. Justice Karol made the oral observation in the matter during the hearing that it praises role of CBI to sort out the custodial death after conducting scientific probe however it has the reservation with the probe of Gudiya case.

Counsel for the CBI pleaded that both cases are interrelated and the agency is entirely focusing on the Gudiya case also likely to complete the probe in a month from today. The agency has informed the court that it had collected as many as 1000 samples to crack the Gudiya case and it was waiting for the report of some samples to confirm the involvement in the rape case. The court fixed next date of hearing on Dec 20 to asked the CBI to come up with the status report in the Gudiya case.

The alleged crime took place on July 4 when 15 yrs old class X th standard student Gudiya was returning home from her school. The police lodged the FIR against some unknown person on July 6 for Gang rape and murder of victims and also arrested six accused on July 14 and 15, however, one of them died in the police lock-up on July 18. State SIT constituted to probe the Gudiya case lodged fake FIR on Jul 19 about custodial death of Suraj by his co-accused Rajinder Singh alias Raju

The bench had converted this matter into public interest petition on July 18 after the death of an accused in the police lock-up and handed over the case to CBI which registered the two cases on July 23 for the rape of victim and death of accused. With the statement of Duty police, sanitary about the death of Suraj CBI arrested Eight members of state police on August 28 who also got charge-sheeted by the CBI on Nov 25 in the local court here, are in judicial custody till Dec 8 next month.